plan 1 year agoJun 05, 2008 13:51 ET
Premium Exploration, Inc. Stakes 110 Claims Covering the Central Orogrande Shear Zone and a Preliminary Drill Plan to Test the Entire Zone
VANCOUVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA--(Marketwire - June 5, 2008) - Premium Exploration, Inc. (TSX VENTURE:PEM) ("Premium" or the "Company") is pleased to announce the staking of 110 quartz lode mining claims that covers the balance of the heart of the Central Orogrande Shear Zone ("OSZ") in Idaho, USA.
The Central Orogrande Shear Zone is located between the Company's Buffalo Gulch Joint Venture property in the Northern Extension of the OSZ and the Company's Friday/Petsite 531,890 ounce inferred gold resource property located in the Southern Extension of the OSZ.
- 9.9 g/t gold over 21.3 meters, including 74.85 g/t gold over 1.5 meters was intercepted in the OSZ by previous operators.
- A review of all available exploration data leads the Company to believe that the OSZ is the mineralizing conduit for the entire 28 km strike length of the geologic structure.
During this review, the Company correlated the results of the historic exploration programs completed by past operators including Glamis Gold, Bema Gold, Cyprus-Amax Minerals, Canden Capital Corporation and Idaho Consolidated Metals Corporation. The historic drill results from past exploration of the Southern Extension of the OSZ has identified a discrete high grade gold zone that appears to run alongside, or as part of, the Orogrande Shear Zone. Also, the historic geophysical and geochemical surveys taken on the Northern Extension of the OSZ indicate the possibility that this discrete high grade gold zone may extend along the entire length of the OSZ, and that the OSZ is a possible mineralizing conduit along its entire 28km strike length. A map of the Historic Idaho Gold Belt may be viewed by clicking on this link: https://www.premiumexploration.com/images/stories/historic%20idaho%20gold%20belt.pdf.
None of the previous exploration programs ever methodically tested the OSZ for high grade continuous gold mineralization, and to date this model has not been systematically drill tested. The purpose of Premium's drill plan is to determine if the high grade gold values encountered in historical drilling at Friday / Petsite persist along the entire 28 km strike length of the OSZ.
Highlights of the Preliminary Drill Plan Include:
- Drill testing of the Southern Extension of the Orogrande Shear Zone at Friday Petsite: The proposed drilling at this zone includes 15 drill holes totaling approximately 3,700 meters on the Friday property. This drilling is designed to intersect the OSZ and delineate mineralization down dip and along strike from gold mineralization encountered in past drilling.
Based on drilling to date, the Friday property has an inferred resource of 531,890 ounces at a grade of 0.0318 ounces per ton using a 0.015 ounce per ton cutoff, with high grade intercepts. Additional details on the Friday property can be reviewed in the 2007 NI 43-101 Technical Report on the property.
- Drill testing of the Central Orogrande Shear Zone: The Company is planning to drill 8 holes in the Central Orogrande Shear Zone totaling 1,700 meters. The drilling on the Central Orogrande Shear Zone is designed to intersect the OSZ in the area as delineated by past soil geochemistry surveys over a 6 kilometer strike length.
Several historic mines are located in the Central Orogrande Shear Zone that mined quartz veins in dilatent zones associated with the shear zone. Past production records haven't been located, so information regarding tonnage or grade of the mines is not available.
- Drill testing of the Northern Extension of the Orogrande Shear Zone at Buffalo Gulch: Premium is planning on drilling 17 holes on the Buffalo Gulch property totaling 3,700 meters. This drilling is designed to test mineralization below the currently defined Buffalo Gulch deposit as well as along strike across the Northern Extension of the OSZ.
Historical coincident geophysical (IP and resistivity) and soil geochemical survey's identified anomalies associated with the Buffalo Gulch deposit to the south of the deposit along the Northern Extension of the OSZ which will be tested by the drilling. The geochemical anomaly is 4 kilometers long and stretches from Buffalo Gulch creek on the north side of the Buffalo Gulch deposit to the South Fork of the Clearwater River south of the Buffalo Gulch deposit where the Northern Extension of the OSZ meet the Central OSZ.. Premium will also conduct additional geophysics to confirm and extend the previous geophysics and further delineate the OSZ from the Buffalo Gulch deposit to the Clearwater River.
The Company is currently preparing budgets, timelines, reviewing potential drill contractors and preparing permit applications to move forward with this significant drill program. As the Company finalizes these details, Premium will issue additional press releases providing updated information on the status of these items.
Overview of the Orogrande Shear Zone
The Orogrande Shear Zone is a gold mineralization belt that is 28 km long in strike length and hosts many of the 219 mapped prospects making up the "Elk City Gold Belt". This includes at least 13 minor historic producers from the early 20th century. The streams paralleling and crossing the OSZ have been extensively placer mined. The Orogrande Shear Zone is comprised of the following three sections: the Northern Extension, the Southern Extension and the Central Shear Zone.